History of the Supreme Court of Justice

The origin of the Supreme Court of Justice is generally traced to the Justice Ministry Decree of 1848.

This abolished the supreme judicial body in civil and criminal cases which had jurisdiction in both the Crown lands of Austria and those of Bohemia, and which had been known as the ‘Supreme Justice Office’ (Oberste Justizstelle). As this body had also acted as a ministry of justice since its establishment in 1749, its replacement by the new Supreme Court of Justice established a final appellate forum clearly independent of the executive.

In 1945 the modern court organization was restored in Austria. In the Second Republic the Supreme Court of Justice became the guarantor of legal certainty and legal protection and thus a pillar of the rule of law.